Manufacture of colored imitation mother of pearl



m ea ies- Paienred June so, 1931 Muir-so stares orrice a nrrmzroo 1*. serum,

vention is to produce economically materials of this character which .u'ill retain their appearance permamently.

In the manufacture of imitations of mother of pearl, attempts have been made to use a pearl essence consisting of brilliant particles of fish scales incorporated in a plastic substance having a ce'llulosic base. The comparatire high cost. of this. essencelmsre:

stricted its use; and instigated a search for cheaper Substitutes. l\lor eover in the production ofmother of pearl objects baring a mosaic gold appearance, the use of dyes or coloring matters in the plastic substance containing pearl'esscnce fails to give the proper hue or metallic gold effect desired.

' i In accordance with my invention, I incorporate into a base of plastic material certain colored metallic salts, as distinguished from metals or alloys, particularly such salts as may be obtained in the 'form of fine. silky,

golden colored scales; for example, certain salts of lead, tin or the like. As specific ex amples I may use bisulphuret of tin, (S113 01? preferably iodide of lead (P111 which is a. heavy bright. yellow powder withoutcdor or taste, permanent in the air and soluble in about 1300 parts of Water at C. and in about 200 parts ofboilinlg Water, sep- ,arating from the latter solution on cooling in brilliant, silky, :golden yellow crystalline laminae, very slightly soluble in alcohol. The

lustrous scales can also be produced by trituratin'g ordinary lead iodide powder in a small quantity of water to which ammonium chloride. has been added, heating to boiling point and allowing the colorless solution to cool with the addition ofwater or other liquids. Using the first method. the size of the golden. particles may be controlled largely by the concentration, rate of. eoolin l l E 22 QR l F NEXVARK, nmvnsnser, nss'ronon To CELLULO men, A conrona'rron or new JERSEY Manor-Across or" coma-r3) iri'rrerron MOTHER or man.

.27, 1928, Scrial'll'o. 15733-1. 1923. Serial No. 249,775.

and presence of colloidal agents, such as "um acacia, gel atln, etc. A satisfactory procet are ID 'conronn- Die-Med and this cp for preparing the fine scales of lead iodide is as follows:

One part' of ordinary lead iodide is dissolved in five hundred parts of boiling Water. Ten parts of a one percent aqueous solution of gum acacia are added. then suddenly cooled with vigorous agitation. The fine silky crystals of lead iodide separate The solution is out and are removed and freed ifnec'essary from water by Washing with ethyl alcohol, methyl alcohol or the lik'ef Oivin to its insoluble character, the wet lead iodit e scales may also be dispersed in-otlier organic liquids or solvents for pyroi'rylin, cellulose acetate,

cellulose others or the like, which maybe j use;d for making the gold colored artificial pearl essence. Such an essence for example,

may be made by the incorporation of 25 parts 4 of lead iodide with to parts of 11.

mixture of equal parts of ethyl alcohol,

methyl alcohol and 'amyl acetate into which v are dissolved ten 5015 parts of pyroxylin or mdre. This essence or SOllltlOn can then be employed for the production of decoratwe plastic materials by anyone of a number of methods now practiced by those skilled in the art of using fish scales essence or other substitutes. The essence of lead iodide and cellulose ester may also be employed for example in the manufacture of colored imitation pearls, by coating; beads or the. like in a manner Well known in the art.- words, I include in my invention combina- In other 't-ious from liquid solutions, such as varnishes or idopes, to the more solid masses manipu-j applied to the surfaces of sheets of plastic masses.

The films or layers containing the scales"' Swell and welded or flowed tolilo/timid gether in the-115ml manner-b heat and preS- I i v e l M A sure. Sheets of suitnlale thickness are then 7 l V ent, Polished and. mounted on different colored backgrounds to produce "arious decorati e configurations. Dill'e-rent eolored :effect's may also lie produced by the use of dyes I; 1. 1" or eololimg matters in the plastic materialitself. The proportions employed are about one to two part5 of the lead iodide to 100 19 parts of pyroxylimlmt I do not limit myselfto these proportions 'as more or less may be" i used depending upon the ell'ect to be oh-l mined; but, in general, the aboveproportions will produce satisfactory results. Other methods of ineorpomting com? v pounds of this character into 1')lastic nmsseswill suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. v \Ylxile I have referred to the plastic em 'ployerl as pyroxylinyit is to be understood v that other ninterials'nmy be employed fini place of'pyr-oxylin,such, for example, as other eom 'aonncls of cellulose such as aeevtyl- I eellnlose, cellulose ethers and other plastic finatei'ials such. as those made with gelatin,

ca'sein, formaldehyde condensation products, v I or other synthetic resins.

This application is a: division of my eo i I mulling applicationSerial K051573131, filed i s v i l- .l December 27, 19:26, for manufacture of 001- i' 1 orecl imitation mother of pearl.

I claim: 1 1. A liqu-icl-pyroxylin compositionadapted for coating material or articles eomprisi-ng "3xpproximately 25 parts of silky lead'iodide, V v v ten to fifteen parts of -p \'ro:\"yl in and to l z o i :1 parts of a- Tolatile solvent for the? l pyroxyl-in. I v

2. A process for the. manufacture of a 1, 4 liquid eompo5ition for :nmki-n eolo' ed im-itzi tions of inter-eons object s -\v llCl] eomprises pro'ducingnn imitation pen-1 essence by the separation from aqueous solution of a 1115+ trons, silkyv'ariety of lead iodide, and-in ineo-rporati-ng this lead iodide into a liquid] comp-rising a volatile solvent-and a plastic 3 substance.- Y

3. A liquid composition adapted for pro I (l-11cing clecomti\'e ell'eets comprising silky leafl iodide, a plastic suhstanee amla volz r'tile 'f solvent for said plastic substance. 7

4. A liquid eomposi-tion for producing (lee-"- olative ell eets eonlplising silky lead iodide." a-plnst-ic sinbtanee and :1 largelfm-wpo -tion of a volatile solvent for the plastic suhstmiee,'" j

than'of the plastic substance; AMERIGO 'F. GAPRIOt 

